Europe Responds to the 2020 U.S. Election Johnson was one of the first world leaders to congratulate Biden on his victory and express his eagerness to begin working together. In a tweet, Johnson elaborated further by announcing key initiatives on which he would like to collaborate, including “climate change,” “promoting democracy,” and “building back better from the pandemic.”77 The U.S. and the UK still have many shared interests, but when it comes to negotiating the post-Brexit era, Biden may choose to maximize relations with the European Union. Ultimately, it will be up to the UK to initiate and strengthen relations to further their interests. The next four years will reveal just how strong the ties of this long-standing relationship really are.
Benelux: Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg Though small, the Benelux countries (Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg) carry significant weight in European and international affairs. Hosting global financial, security, and diplomatic institutions, the Benelux responses to the U.S. election provoked a critical look inward as well as outward towards the U.S. as a once-reliable partner in multilateral agreements. BELGIUM
Belgian responses to the U.S. election are somewhat illustrative of the various responses seen across the European continent. The 2020 U.S. election was followed closely by Belgians and presented an opportunity for the country’s politicians and citizens to reexamine their own political parties, electoral processes, and their dependence on American leadership. Built on a shared commitment to multilateral institutions and agreements such as NATO and the Paris Climate Accords, an otherwise historically harmonious Belgian-American relationship has developed fissures as a result of the Trump presidency. Mainstream Belgian media outlets lambasted Trump in the days leading up to the election, chiding his denial of climate change, his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, and his repeated claims of election fraud.78 Politicians across Belgium’s political spectrum were quick to offer their congratulations to Biden, with many expressing hopes for reconciliation and the “defense of the values of democracy.”79 While political leaders may have displayed unyielding
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